Soft posable doll

ABSTRACT

A posable doll has a generally tubular body arranged in a circular shape with a center opening. A pair of legs extend radially outward from the tubular body and each of the legs has a length. A pair of arms extend radially outward from the tubular body and each of the arms has a length. A filler material is stuffed in the tubular body, the arms, and the legs. A wire skeleton extends around the circular shape within the tubular body and extends over a substantial portion of the length through each of the arms and the legs. The wire skeleton is capable of being bent to various positions and of retaining each of the various positions as desired.

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

[0001] The present patent is related to co-pending U.S. Provisionalpatent application Serial No. 60/329,418, which was filed on Oct. 15,2001.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The invention is generally related to dolls, and moreparticularly to a soft posable doll with a circular body.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] Dolls and other toy objects have been known for thousands ofyears and can take on many different forms, configurations, andconstructions. Many of these objects, such as stuffed dolls and toysincluding teddy bears, are intended essentially for children and areknown to have a soft feel and structure. These types of dolls arestuffed with a resilient filler material or stuffing and are sewn to aparticular shape. Dolls and toys often include limbs extending from abody. In some instances, the limbs simply hang freely or limp from thebody. In other instances, the limbs are sewn in a fixed positionextending from the body. When the limbs or the body are manually movedor reoriented, they will return to their original shape and positionupon release.

[0004] Posable toy action figures are also known. One type of posablefigure has a rubber or plastic exterior material layer with a posableinternal skeleton structure embedded within the exterior layer. When thebody or a limb of the figure is moved to an alternate position or shape,the position or shape is retained by the skeleton structure untilfurther manual reorientation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0005] Exemplary dolls in accordance with the teachings of the presentinvention are described and explained in greater detail below with theaid of the drawing figures in which:

[0006]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one example of a posable dollconstructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

[0007]FIG. 2 is a front view of the posable doll substantially similarto the doll shown in FIG. 1, but having various stylistic differences.

[0008]FIGS. 3 and 4 are front views of posable dolls substantiallysimilar to the doll shown in FIG. 1, but having alternative stylisticdifferences and having arms positioned in different physicalorientations.

[0009]FIG. 5 is a front view of a posable doll substantially similar tothe doll shown in FIG. 1, but having alternative stylistic differencesand having the legs positioned in a different orientation and showing awire skeleton structure in phantom view.

[0010]FIG. 6 is a cross section of a posable doll substantially similarto that shown in FIG. 5 and taken along line VI-VI shown therein.

[0011]FIG. 7 is a full side view of the posable doll shown in FIG. 6.

[0012]FIGS. 8 and 9 are front views of a portion of the doll shown inFIG. 1 and illustrating other alternative posable hair styles.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Referring now to the drawings, FIGS. 1-9 illustrate variousexamples of a soft, posable doll 20 constructed in accordance with theteachings of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the doll 20generally has a body 22 arranged in a circular shape resembling adoughnut or a bagel. The body 22 thus has a center opening 24 that candefine a mouth opening of the doll 20, as shown in each of theillustrated examples. The center opening 24 in the present example alsodefines a center axis of the body 22.

[0014] A pair of legs 26 extend radially outward from the body 22 andare positioned generally next to one another on the body. A pair of arms28 extend radially outward from the body 22, one each generally near arespective one of the legs. The region of the body 22 extending betweenthe arms 28 and opposite the legs 26 defines a head region 30 of thedoll. The region in which the legs 26 are attached is a bottom region 32of the doll. The body 22 also has a front side 34 and a back side 36.

[0015] In one example, the front side 34 has a pair of stylized eyes 38provided on a single piece of plastic 40 that is adhered in any suitablemanner to the body 22. The eyes 38 can alternatively be provided havinga variety of different constructions and configurations withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. In anotherexample, a two dimensional representation of the eyes 38 can be drawn orsewn onto the front side 34 of the body 22, if desired.

[0016] The doll can also have a pair of hands 42, one each disposed atthe distal end of a respective one of the arms 28. The hands 42 areconnected to the arms at corresponding wrist regions 44. The doll canfurther have a pair of feet 46, one each disposed at a distal end of arespective one of the legs 26. The feet 46 are connected to the legs 26at corresponding ankle regions 48.

[0017] The doll 20 can also have a nose 50 attached to a front side 34of the body 22. In this example, the nose 50 is a ball which can beconstructed in the same manner as the body 22 described below, or can beof many different alternative constructions. In another example, atwo-dimensional representative nose can simply be drawn or sewn to thebody 22. The doll 20 also has a plurality of strands of hair 52extending from the head region 30 of the body 22. The hair 52 isdescribed in greater detail below.

[0018] As shown in FIGS. 5-7, the body 22 has an exterior layer of soft,pliable material 60. In one example, the exterior layer 60 is a fabric.A resilient filler material or stuffing 62 is encased within theexterior layer 60. In one example, the stuffing can be packed loosefibers or strands of material, such as cotton wadding or padding. Theexterior layer 60 and stuffing 62, in combination, provide a soft orplush feel for the doll 20. However, the stuffing 62 within the exteriorlayer 60 of the body 22, legs 26, and arms 28 is packed densely enoughto generally retain the three dimensional shapes of the doll 20.

[0019]FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate a skeleton structure 70 embedded in thestuffing 62 within parts of the body 22, arms 28, and legs 26. Theskeleton structure can take on various forms and configurations fromthat disclosed herein and yet fall within the scope of the invention. Inthe disclosed example, the skeleton structure 70 has a primary segment72 and a pair of arm segments 74. The primary segment 72 is bent tofollow the contour of the body 22 from a leg position in the bottomregion 32, around the body 22 through the head region 30, and to theother leg position at the bottom region. The distal ends of the primarysegment 72 each terminate near a respective one of the feet 46. AU-shaped loop 76 is provided in the distal ends of the primary segment72 adjacent each foot to prevent contact of the sharp end of the wirewith the bottom of the foot. Each arm segment 74 has a proximal endcoupled to the primary segment 72 via a U-shaped loop 78 at acorresponding arm position within the body 22. The distal ends of thearm segments 74 terminate near each hand 42.

[0020] The skeleton structure 70 is comprised of a bendable wire 80 thathas a flexible plastic coating 82. The wire 80 can be bent and canretain the selected position. As shown in FIGS. 2-5, the arms and legscan be repositioned and the selected positions will be retained by theskeleton structure 70. Though not shown, the body 22 can also bereconfigured to change the mouth opening or body shape and the primarysegment 72 will retain the selected body orientation. The plasticcoating 82 protects the wire from corrosion and assists in preventinginjury to those using the doll. The plastic coating 82 also assists inincreasing surface friction of the skeleton structure 70 so that theskeleton does not easily slide and reposition within the body 22.

[0021] In one example, the loops 76 or the distal ends of the primarysegment terminate slightly into each foot 46 beyond the ankle regions48. In this way, the feet can be repositioned relative to the legs atthe ankle region 48, if desired. Similarly, the distal ends of the armsegments 74 each terminate slightly into the hands 42 beyond the wristregions 44. In this way, the hands can be repositioned relative to thearms at the wrist regions 44.

[0022] As shown in each of the various FIGS. 1-9, the hair 50 isposable. It can be repositioned or manipulated into any one of manydifferent styles. The hair is fabricated so that it can retain theselected style. Thus, the look of the doll 20 can be varied as desiredby a doll user. To render the hair 50 posable, the strands arefabricated from a material that is flexible and yet substantially holdsa selected position. The strands can be captured and sewn between frontand back layers of the exterior fabric layer 60. The strands canalternatively be spread over an area of the head region 30 and attachedby means of looping an elongate strand through the fabric to form twohair strands.

[0023] Also as shown in the various FIGS. 1-9, the style and look of thedoll can vary considerably and yet fall within the scope of the presentinvention. The fabric materials of the body 22, arms 28, and legs 26 canbe selected, combined, and sewn so as to make the doll appear to bewearing clothing. For example, the doll in FIG. 1 appears to havesleeves and the doll in FIGS. 4 and 5 is wearing a hat. The dolls canalso be provided in a variety of colors. Additionally, as shown in FIGS.1 and 4, the front side 34 of the body 22 can include various markingsor features so as to give the appearance of a beard 84, a mustache 86,freckles 88, and the like. The hands can be fabricated in a variety ofhand positions or gestures. The feet can be fabricated to appear to bewearing shoes as shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 6, the feet can alsobe fabricated to include a relatively rigid pad 90 of plastic or thelike to define a foot bottom. Such a foot bottom can assist the doll instanding on a surface, if desired.

[0024] Although certain dolls have been disclosed and described hereinin accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the scope ofcoverage of this patent is not limited thereto. On the contrary, thispatent covers all embodiments of the teachings of the invention fairlyfalling within the scope of the appended claims, either literally orunder the doctrine of equivalents.

We is claimed is:
 1. A posable doll comprising: a generally tubular dollbody arranged in a circular ring defining a center opening; a pair oflegs extending radially outward from the doll body, each of the pair oflegs having a length; a pair of arms extending radially outward from thedoll body, each of the pair of arms having a length; a filler materialstuffed into an interior of the doll body, the arms, and the legs; and awire skeleton disposed within and extending around the circular ringwithin the doll body and extending through each of the pair of arms andlegs over a substantial portion of the respective length, wherein theposable doll can be bent to a selected position by application of forceto the doll body, the arms, and/or the legs as desired, and can retainthe selected position.